Knossos palace

The palace of Knossos, the most important centre of the Minoan civilisation, is located in Heraklion, Crete. It covers an area of approximately 20,000 sq.m. The palace was founded circa 2000 B.C. (Protopalatial period) and, following many destructions, was rebuilt on the same site and flourished in the Neopalatial period (1750-1430 B.C.).Originally uncovered by Minos Kalokairinos in 1878, the palace was excavated by Sir Arthur Evans in the first three decades of the 20th century, and is still being investigated by the British School of Archaeology today.

The palace consists of wings set around a rectangular paved court, while the West Court was an important point of reference in the whole architectural complex. The West Wing housed the storerooms, the sanctuaries and the Throne Room, while the East Wing contained the private apartments and the workshops. The city spread out over a wide area around the palace, with particularly important monuments and buildings, roads, cemeteries, workshops, quarries and sacred spaces.

Phaistos Disc

Phaistos was one of the most important centres of Minoan civilization and the most wealthy and powerful city in southern Crete. It was inhabited from the Neolithic period until the foundation and development of the Minoan palaces in the 15th century B.C. It came to light during the excavations carried out by the Italian archaeologist F. Halbherr in the last two decades of the 19^th century while the Italian School of Archaeology continues investigations in the area today.The most important finding from Phaistos is the famous "Disc of Phaistos". The disc of Phaistos is the most important example of hieroglyphic inscription from Crete and was discovered around 1903-05 in a small room near the depositories of the "archive chamber", in the north - east apartments of the palace, together with a Linear A tablet and pottery dated to the beginning of the Neo-palatial period (1700- 1600 B.C.). The disc of Phaistos can be seen at the Archaeological Museum of Herakleion.